Assessment of Knowledge of Cancer Risk Factors and Awareness of Early Cancer Warning Signs among University Students

Objective: To predict the level of knowledge about cancer risk factors and the level of awareness of the most common warning symptoms of cancer among university students in Kyrenia, Northern Cyprus. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in Kyrenia, Northern Cyprus among university students from different academic disciplines, including medical and non-medical disciplines, using a structured questionnaire. Results: A total of 150 students participated in this study, half of them were non-medical students (51.3%). There was a low level of knowledge of cancer risk factors reported by most of the respondents of both groups. The difference between the responses to risk factors between the medical and non-medical students was found to be statistically significant regarding alcohol consumption (9.6% vs. 13%; p=.004), consumption of processed red meat (12.3% vs. 54.5%; p<.001), family history of cancer (4.1% vs. 6.5%; p<.001), respectively. Permanent unexplained pain was significantly recognized by the respondents of the medical group compared to the non-medical group (48% vs. 18.2%; p<0.001). The medical and non-medical participants reported a low mean knowledge (2.24 +/- 1.52 vs. 3.11 +/- 1.60); and mean awareness (1.70 +/- 0.91 vs. 1.00 +/- 0.81), respectively. Conclusion: There is a gap and low knowledge about cancer prevention and awareness of cancer signs among medical and non-medical undergraduates. Efforts should be made to increase cancer knowledge and awareness through continuing education programs for all university students at various levels to detect cancer early.